Judd gives up Carlton captaincy

Judd gives up Carlton captaincy - Yahoo7

Chris Judd has confirmed he will stand down as Carlton captain and relinquish his role in the leadership group entirely.

After five years as captain, Judd steps aside to focus solely on his playing commitments under new coach Mick Malthouse, who stated his intention to revamp the club's leadership structure as early as his first training session in November.

"It has been a tremendous privilege to captain this footy club and I have thoroughly enjoyed the past five years," Judd said.

"However I have decided I want to step down and hand the job over to someone else and with a new coach it seemed like the right time for a fresh start at the club."

The 29-year-old dual Brownlow medallist said he could now concentrate primarily on doing a job for the team on the field.

"At this stage of my career, I am looking forward to getting back to enjoying the essence of footy and not having as much responsibility around the club as I have had in previous years," he said.

"I certainly won't be pushing any less hard to bring success and will still have an active role, however it just won't be in an official leadership capacity."

Speaking in November, coach Mick Malthouse likened Carlton's reliance on Judd to Nathan Buckley's influence at Collingwood when he arrived at the club as coach in 2000.

That summation prompted Malthouse to assess all options and he called on the rest of the Blues' list to stand up and lighten the load on the dual Brownlow medallist.

Midfielder Andrew Carrazzo could be the early front runner for the role after he received high praise from Malthouse shortly after the club's first training session on November 5.

"I see this guy here (Carrazzo), he is highly respected in the leadership group," Malthouse said.

"I know there are players, Andrew is one of them who has been around for a long time and understands (the leadership situation).

"Outside I saw him (Carrazzo) as a great tagger but coming here I see how players respond to him."